Tax rises were needed, but Labour must not dismiss the difficulties faced by farming families

No tax change is perfect. Systems can never be customised to take in every set of circumstances. There are always edge cases – people who are outliers in the groups that new measures are aimed at. Several hundred farming families seem likely to fall into this category, following the changes to inheritance tax in Rachel Reeves’s budget that have prompted this week’s angry protests. Those whose incomes will make it difficult for them to pay the new 20% rate on agricultural property above a £1m threshold may need to sell land, or adapt their businesses in other ways.

Given that farms were previously exempt, it is not surprising that this has caused upset. Very few people want to pay more tax – especially on family-owned assets to which they are attached. There is a reasonable argument that more notice should have been given of the government’s plans, which were not in its manifesto. Had a consultation taken place it is possible that the £1m threshold might have been set higher, given the average size of a farm.